Corruption of family and society exposed in Metamorphoses Franz Kafka's existentialist perspective on the meaning of life (or rather, the lack thereof), is clearly represented through Gregor Samsa in Metamorphoses. Kafka's belief that there is no meaning in life nor any reason to have an optimistic outlook towards life is a dominant force in the story. The author is able to create conflict by portraying Gregor as the exact opposite of his personal beliefs: Kafka's almost paradoxical belief that, although there is no meaning to life, the individual can create one for himself, Gregor lacks completely. Kafka's strong emphasis on individualism and the corruption that society and the family infrastructure represent is demonstrated through Gregor's interactions with members of his own family and those of society. This leads to the development of Gregor Samsa as something more than a sympathetic character, and makes the Metamorphosis a tale of fantastic, fabulous proportions, complete with moral and a seemingly happy ending. Kafka's Metamorphosis was written in 1912, in the midst of a German cultural, social and economic metamorphosis. Industrialization had reached Germany and changed people's mentality. The growing number of factorial jobs available, the crippling shifts and hours,. . . - all this came with industrialization, and this is what Kafka wrote in protest. Through Gregor, Kafka demonstrates the dehumanization that industrialization was bringing to Germany, to the point that there was little to no difference between man and animal. By transforming Gregor's physical being into a nameless and repulsive insect, Kafka highlights the similarities between the... middle of paper... followed by a period of "vacant and peaceful meditation" (Kafka, 127), in which he reflects with new insight into his past life and, while making tentative plans for the future, dies a peaceful death. Gregor's death, followed so closely by his nascent understanding of selfhood, brings the story full and complete, beginning with his physical transformation into an insect and ending with his humanization. Kafka uses Gregor Samsa as an almost fairy-tale character, as if to warn his reader "Don't be like Gregor! Follow your own path or you will die like a dung bug!" Kafka's emphasis on individualism and how the corruption that society and family infrastructure affects a human being develops this story into one with moralistic consequences for the reader, convincing them to review their priorities and reset them accordingly..